My Big Tree – children’s book review

My Big Tree – children’s book review

Regular readers of my blog will know that my boy Leo is a very active toddler. He is always on the go, running all over the place and it wouldn’t be unfair to describe him as a bit of a handful. Although Leo loves to be outside exploring and using up his heaps of energy, one of his favourite past times is to snuggle up with me and read some story books. I was delighted when children’s author Maria Ashworth got in touch asking if Leo and I would like to have a read of her new story, My Big Tree. View Post

22 books my 2 year old loves

My boy is such a bookworm. It may seem a strange way to describe someone who can’t read a single word but it is true, Leo absolutely loves books. Toys are great and everything but, when it comes to entertainment, nothing can compete with a good book in my toddler’s eyes.

Books are amazing, they are capable of taking us to places no toy car or train set ever could. A story book is the best way of unlocking your child’s growing imagination, their tiny minds thriving on exciting tales and beautiful illustrations. We all know books are also perfect for helping your child’s language and reading skills to develop, as well as being useful tools in teaching children other essential lessons too: colours, numbers, the alphabet and so on.
For a 2 and a half year old, Leo has a pretty large book collection, it would probably put your local library’s children section to shame. I thought I would share some of Leo’s favourite books with you, in case your little one is in need of some new reading material and you need some inspiration.


22 books my 2 year old loves …
1.Old Bear

                                              
                                                            Click to buy.

The Old Bear story by Jane Hissey is a firm bedtime favourite in this house. Lots of talking cuddly toys go on adventure to save their friend Old Bear from the loft. Think Toy Story, but with cuter, cuddlier toys.

2. The totally terrifying three

                                                 
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The tale of a not so scary dragon, witch and giant. This book is both exciting and funny and Leo just can’t get enough of it.

3. Room on the broom

                                                  
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Julia Donaldson is a fantastic children’s author, if you haven’t heard of her then you must have been hiding under a rock in the deep dark wood. This story of a friendly witch, lots of animals and a rickety old broom is sure to ignite the imagination of any toddler. 


4. Dear Zoo

                                                
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The classic lift the flap book full of animal fun. This interactive book is great fun, your toddler will love discovering what animal the zoo have sent next.

5. Detective Ted
                                                   
                                                                   Click to buy

Something strange is going on in Edward’s house at night, a mystery only his alter ego Detective Ted can solve. An exciting, rhyming tale of a crime fighting teddy and his hamster sidekick.

6. Peppa Pig ABC

                                           
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There are so many A B C books on Leo’s bookshelf but his favourite has to be this Pepa Pig one, of course! Each page has a letter, picture and the corresponding word (A is for apple etc), Leo can recognise nearly all the pctures/letters now.

7. The Gruffalo 

                                                      
                                                                  Click to buy

How could I write a list about books and not include this one? The well known story of a little mouse and his adventure through The Deep Dark Word is a must for every toddler’s bookshelf.

8. Spot goes on holiday

                                                 
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Spot books are the original lift the flap books and this one is definitely one of Leo’s favourites. Join Spot on his first ever trip to the beach, build sandcastles, go swimming and maybe even make some new friends too.

9. The big monster snoreybook

                                               
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A book full of sleepy monsters all in for a big surprise when they are woken up by a mysterious noise. This book is bright, fun and perfect for any monster fanatics out there.

10. Zog

                                              
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Yet another Julia Donaldson book here, she is just brilliant. Meet Zog, a young dragon who desperately wants to get a golden star from his teacher at dragon school. Can he do it? You’ll have to read it to find out.

11. Little Bear’s trousers

                                                   
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This is another story from the Old Bear collection. Little Beat has lost his favourite red trousers, help him and the other toys find them before they are lost forever.

12. Peppa Pig at the fun fair

                                               
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I am pretty sure we have the whole collection of Peppa Pig books but this is the one Leo always asks for. Peppa and her family are off to spend the day at the fun fair, expect disasters for Daddy Pig on the helter skelter, lots of prizes for Peppa and lots of snorting from your toddler.

13. The wheels on the bus
                                                 
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A colourfully illustrated book of the popular children’s nursery rhyme. Leo loves singing along and it is a book that requires very little concentration from me, win win!

14. Not now Bernard

                                                   
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This story is about the day Bernard finds a monster in his garden. His parent’s ignore his fears of being eaten, with disastrous consequences. It sounds horrible, but Leo loves monsters so he finds this story very entertaining.

15. Peppa Pig: Stomp and roar!

                                               
                                                               Click to buy

This is a noisy book all about Peppa and her friends trip to Grampy Rabbit’s Dinosaur Park. There are buttons to press to make snorts, roars and even a song at the end. Your toddler will love this book but it might give you a headache after a while.

16. Mr Daydream

                                                
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Just one of the many Mr Men books available. Mr Daydream takes Jack away from his boring history lesson and they travel all over the world, having adventures and getting into trouble.

17. Ruff

                                                
                                                                 Click to buy

Jane Hissey’s Old Bear collection really is perfect bedtime reading material. Ruff is the story of a little dog who has never had a birthday, that is until he comes bounding into Old Bears house and the toys decide to give him a whole week of birthday parties. A lovely story full of just as lovely illustrations.

18. There’s a shark in the bath

                                             
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Dulcie finds a shark in the bath but her parent’s don’t believe her when she tells them. The story sees Dulcie try and out smart the shark before he and his family eat her up for breakfast,

19. Penguin

                                                  
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A simple little book about a boy Ben and his new penguin. Your toddler will find Ben’s efforts to get his penguin to talk really funny, will they ever be best friends? You will have to wait until the very last page to find that one out.

20. My Grandpa is amazing

                                                          
                                                                      Click to buy

This is one of four books all about different family members (Mum, Dad, Grandpa and Granny). Leo loves My Grandpa is amazing best because, well, they are aren’t they? To a child, grandparents are just the best thing ever.

21. The smartest giant in town

                                                         
                                                                      Click to buy

I know, it’s another Julia Donaldson book but she is definitely Leo’s favourite author. This story has a fun little song, a friendly giant and lots of talking animals as well. Brightly illustrated by Axel Scheffler, Donaldson’s tales are easily recognisable in any book shop.

22. The dinosaur that pooped Christmas.

                                                     
                                                                Click to buy

This may have a seasonal theme but if your child loves dinosaurs then this book can be enjoyed all year round. When a little boy gets too greedy, Father Christmas decides to send him a dinosaur to teach him what Christmas is really about, a lesson with very smelly consequences!

Does your toddler love a good book too? Have you got any of these books? I would love to know what your little ones favourite book is.


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My Random Musings

Reading list 2016

I love reading and I have been a book worm for as long as I can remember. As a child I would sit and read Roald Dahl and Enid Blyton books for hours on end. As I grew up I engrossed myself in the stories of Jacqueline Wilson and J K Rowling, reading late into the night and waking up with my book, page lost, on the floor and my glasses squashed somewhere on my pillow. I inevitably became obsessed with Stephanie Meyer’s vampire romance in my late teens before branching out and discovering thriller novels in my early twenties. I am pleased to say that now, as an adult, my taste in books has grown and I now enjoy reading a range of genres. 

Last year I read loads of books. I read romance books, books about the future and thrillers so good I couldn’t put them down. Although I have decided I want to blog more this year, I also want to make the time to read more regularly as well. To me, there is nothing more relaxing than sitting down with a good book and being transported away from all the worries and stresses of your own life and, instead, immersing yourself in the lives and stories of fictional characters, found in the words on the page.
To make sure I do find the time to read more this year, I am making a list of books that I really want to read and it will give my inner book worm something to look forward to.
Here it is, my reading list for 2016.
1. Mad about the boy, Helen Fielding – I love the Bridget Jones books and I can’t wait to find out what happens next with Bridget and Mark after their happily ever after.
2. The Good Girl. Mary Kubica – This is a debut, thriller novel by Kubica and came up in a list of books to read if you enjoyed Gone Girl. I really, really loved Gillian Flynn’s twisted tale of Nick and Amy Dunne so, hopefully, Kubica has produced something just as captivating. 
3. Me before you, Jo Jo Moyes –  A friend lent me a book by Jo Jo Moyes at the beginning of last year and I loved it. Sometimes I find romance novels a bit predictable and boring but I really love Moyes’s writing style, fingers crossed this will be another good read.
4. The Widow, Fiona Barton – This is another debut thriller and is recommended reading for anyone who enjoyed The Girl on the Train. I just finished Paula Hawkins bestseller this week, I was hooked from the start and I need another book like that in my life.
5. Paper Towns, John Green – This is a young adult novel by the author of The Fault in our Stars. I am 24 so probably not in the exact demographic for this book but I enjoyed Green’s previous novel. Sometimes books in this genre are popular amongst all ages, just look how well The Hunger Games has done.
6. The Lie, C L Taylor – When we were on holiday last year I saw loads of people reading this on the beach. It is yet another psychological thriller and according to the reviews, it is pretty damn good.
7. The Marble Collector, Cecilia Ahern –  I love this author and the few books I have read of hers, I have devoured in just a couple of days. I have picked this book up in the shop a few times but not got around to actually buying it yet.
8. The Grownup, Gillian Flynn – Gillian Flynn is rapidly becoming my favourite author and I can’t wait to read this. Unfortunately, it is only a short story but I am hoping the small amount of pages won’t have an impact on her brilliant, suspense-building-until-it-hurts style of writing. 
I think this list is probably long enough. As I have a family to look after, a blog to write and, well, I need to sleep and stuff, I can’t really spend my whole year with my nose in a book (no matter how much I would like to).
What books are you looking forward to reading this year? Have you read any of the novels I have mentioned? Let me know what you thought of them, no spoilers though please because that would just be mean. Happy reading 🙂

My Random Musings

Why my toddler loves the library

Me and Oli have been reading to Leo ever since he was tiny. As soon as he started crawling Leo would push books along the floor to us and squeal until we read them.
I am a massive bookworm so I don’t know who enjoys storytime more, me or Leo!
Leo is more likely to be found sat in a pile of books than playing with his toys, anyone else’s bub like this?


So, what more perfect place is there to take a book loving toddler than the library? Our local library is only a 10 minute walk away so we go and have a browse at the books most weeks.

The library near us is very small but has a section completely dedicated to children’s books and has a small play area. Leo loves pulling out all the books and then bringing over a small selection for me to read, approximately 5 times each! Current favourites are any books featuring  Spot, Peppa Pig or Lulu, thank god he has grown out of the ‘That’s not my (insert animal)’ books..I couldn’t take much more of those!

Once Leo gets bored looking at the books and pestering the people on the computers, there is a little table where he can do some colouring. I must admit he eats the crayons more than he uses them to draw but we’ll get there! There are also giant lego bricks to play with and big, squishy bean bags for when it’s time to sit and look at books again.

Every Wednesday a lovely lady from the local primary school comes and does half an hour of rhyme time. Leo absolutely loves this,  nursery rhymes and books..the boy is in his element. Rhyme time is a great time for Leo to meet other children and for me to chat to mums who live in our area. Me and Leo like to practice all the songs and actions at home and he loves to get stuck right in, boogying away every Wednesday.
Reading to your little one is really important for developing their language, speach and of course reading skills. Libraries have a great variety of free books and you can easily spend an hour there, perfect rainy day activity.

Sometimes the experience can be a bit stressful, especially if Leo is throwing books everywhere and shouting, obviously he can’t read the signs asking for quiet quite yet! But 9 times out of 10, a visit to the library always goes down a treat.

Does your little one enjoy visiting the library? Apart from soft play I would say it’s Leo’s favourite place.
The Twinkle Diaries